The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series

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Books in the series

Structuring thought and imagination brick by brick, Lego is more than child’s play By Sondra Bacharach You might think Lego is just a kids’ toy – one you played with as a child and now step on as you walk through the house as a parent. These days, however, the bricks are showing up in all…

In Space, Can Anyone Hear Your Philosophy? A Look at Alien and Philosophy with Editor/Contributor Jeffrey Ewing By M.B. Sutherland One measure of a good story is how much time you spend thinking about it after it ends. Does it make you wonder what the characters were thinking? What motivated them? Does it make…

We can’t think of a more appropriate day than the unluckiest day of the year to kick off our spooktacular Halloween giveaway! If you’re feeling brave, help us celebrate the spooky season by entering to win six spine-tingling classics from Wiley Blackwell’s Humanities collection, including: Supernatural and Philosophy Monsters and Mad Scientists: A Cultural History…

Wonder Woman, Guns, and The Problem of Evil By Edwardo Pérez In 2017’s Wonder Woman, we get Princess Diana’s origin story – part Batman (people she loves are killed and she wants payback), part Superman (she’s a gift to humanity sent to protect us), and part, well, Wonder Woman. She’s not only able to pick…

Nietzsche, Trump, Football, and Game of Thrones By Edwardo Pérez “Bend the knee.” This seemed to be Daenerys Targaryen’s catchphrase in Game of Thrones’ seventh season and even though the season ended on August 27th, the phrase continues to resonate in many different ways. Certainly, much had been said about kneeling since Colin Kaepernick first…

LEGOs, Impermanence, and Buddhism* by David Kahn Thousands of years before the advent of LEGO, Tibetan Buddhist monks were mastering the MOC (My Own Creation). Mandalas are an ancient, sacred form of Buddhist art. They are similar to LEGO in being colorful, imaginative displays of creativity, but the multi-colored plastic pieces are replaced with…

Review of Lego and Philosophy All in all, it’s not just another brick in the toy chest. At least that’s the conclusion you might reach after reading a new book coedited by University of Minnesota philosophy professor Roy T. Cook titled “LEGO and Philosophy: Constructing Reality Brick by Brick.” Cook and co-editor Sondra Bacharach, a…